Once again, President Obama finds himself in the middle of a complicated political equation: after two months of deliberating a military strategy on Afghanistan, and catching heat from Republicans for perceived “weakness”, the President came out with a plan for 30,000 additional troops to the Afghan front—and promptly opened himself up to attack from his own base. Liberals in Congress, particularly those from the California delegation, are threatening everything from stalling funding for the troop surge in Afghanistan to disrupting the President’s domestic agenda. Can the new Afghanistan strategy survive liberal angst?
An LA County Superior Court judge ruled today that LA City Controller Wendy Greuel can take the place of her predecessor, Laura Chick, and continue a lawsuit filed by the former city attorney to defend her right to conduct performance audits on programs initiated by (or within the office of) elected officials. While this is a left over fight between former City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo and Chick, the implications loom large for L.A.’s current government. How much authority does, or should, the Los Angeles City Controller have to perform audits? Should the office be given unlimited power to conduct audits anytime, on anyone or do we need some governing body to determine when they're warranted?
Is all that careful parenting backfiring? Is 25 the new 15? A new book argues that protecting America’s young people from difficult realities may actually doom them to a perpetual, dependent adolescence. Sound familiar?
Same show -new cast! Charlie Beck was officially been sworn in as new chief of the LAPD yesterday. And today, he sits down with Patt to talk about his philosophy of policing the City of Angels and his approach to the reforms started by his predecessor, Bill Bratton. We take your calls for Chief Beck’s inaugural “Ask the Chief.”
Since originally being published in 1980 activist and historian Howard Zinn’s “A People’s History of the United States” has sold more than 2 million copies. In his latest effort, “The People Speak” Zinn uses celebrities to give voice to the under-heard from throughout history.
Patt Morrison is known for its innovative discussions of local politics and culture, as well as its presentation of the effects of national and world news on Southern California.
